Philippines Cryptocurrency Exchanges | Two More Added to the List!

Philippines cryptocurrency exchanges: The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has just approved two new cryptocurrency exchanges, the news outlet BusinessWorld reported July 6th. Presently, there are only five regulated crypto exchanges throughout the entire country.

Chuchu G. Fonacier, BSP Deputy Governor, said that the regulator has approved the applications for ETranss and Virtual Currency Philippines, Inc. The platforms will convert pesos into digital currencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH).

The other cryptocurrency exchanges approved by the central bank are Rebittance, Inc; Betur, Inc (Coins.ph); and BloomSolutions.

Crypto Progress in the Philippines

The BSP has recognized the benefits of digital currency in terms of cheaper remittances and faster transactions. However, senior officials are keeping a close eye on the cryptocurrency market as they see the potential for cryptocurrencies to be used to aid in crimes and money laundering.

The Anti-Money Laundering Council in the Philippines has started closely monitoring digital currency transactions to monitor ‘dirty’ money. All firms approved must provide the council with records of any covered or suspicious transactions.

Governor Fonacier states that VC exchanges will no longer need to apply for separate licenses to operate as electronic money issuers. It was previously planned that these exchanges would need to do so that the government would maintain and run the e-wallets for clients, but it seems the Central Banks has changed its mind.

“Now, we are refining the rules… If your business model has a portion making use of e-wallet, then there’s an additional requirement but not necessarily or automatically an e-money license,” Ms. Fonacier told reporters in an ambush interview.

According to BusinessWorld, over the past several years the conversion from the peso to cryptocurrency has grown significantly. Bitcoin was recognized as a legitimate payment method by the BSP earlier this year and last November the Philipeans SEC was considering legalizing digital tokens and classifying them as a security.

Cryptocurrency seems to be rapidly growing within the country, and now investors have two other choices of Philippines cryptocurrency exchanges to choose from.